Drawn from one of our oldest recipes, Smitten Ale began as part of a series of rye beers at our Eccentric Café. The combination of sharp citrus & resinous flavors from the hops with the earthy, rustic overtones of the rye malt contribution yield an interesting take on the American Pale Ale.

More User Reviews:

Pours into a standard pint a clear light to medium golden with a great looking sticky over one finger white head that lift multiple rings of broken lace as it settled into a frothy mass.Aromas were just mild with a sharp note of rye over top of light citric hops,again pretty light.Flavors have some decent citric hops and sharp rye notes but they end ebruptly and nothing really lingers.There is some earthiness that comes into play but the flavors seem to die out pretty quickly after a good start.Not one of the better rye ales I have had but it's not horrible by any means.

Pours a somewhat hazy, golden-yellow color, some light amber highlights when held up to the light. A soapy and foamy white head forms and settles at about a quarter-inch where it sits atop the beer for a surprisingly long time. The nose has a very crispy and sharp stature, almost clean and lager-like with mild grains and dryness, most likely from the rye. The hops have an earthy, dirty, and musty appearance, maybe just a bit floral and rosey. All in all, the nose is a little quieter than I would have liked. Even upon letting this warm up a little bit, it never really hits your nostrils that hard and the rye isn't as powerful as I'd hoped for.

The taste has an initial bitter spike from the hops, which retain their musty, earthy, and floral characther. Coupled with the high level of carbonation, Smitten cuts the tongue sharply and feels very crispy and refreshing. This is drinking almost more like a lager than an ale. Some dry rye and bread comes out about midway through and rides into the aftertaste which actually becomes dominated by heavy rye, along with a light bitterness. Some clean yeast flavors on the very tail end, but not really enough to combat the rye. I'm very pleased to see the rye make a big appearance, even if it isn't until nearly the end of the sip. Better late than never, I guess, although I still wish it held a larger stance in the aroma. Medium body with pretty heavy carbonation.

A crispy, tasty, and refreshing ale that feels almost more like a lager. Nice helping of rye, though it would've been nice if it were more "up front" with it. Drinkability is great, but I could see this one getting old fairly quickly. Still a solid choice, though, but there are better rye beers out there.

My 2nd beer from Bell's and my 2nd let down. The label to me explains how it tastes. As a kid we would dare each other to break the stem of a dandelion and lick the white stuff....this beer taste like that. Very bitter and immediately after sipping I feel my sinuses clear. The after taste taste like a generic beer to me.

This ale poured from a bottle a nice golden and cloudy colour. There was visible sediment in the bottle that was seen before even pouring into the pint glass. Ale smelled of rye and citrus hops, and tasted of bitter hops and rye. Very strong flavors. Sweet malt notes blended well with the citrus hops, and lingered on in the aftertaste.